Basic Training
by AreoplaneJelly
Summary: First Story, EEK! Tara Tennant is trying to get into Basic Training for the 3rd time. Tonsilitis and Broken Arms have stopped her before, but now she's determined to earn her Grey Shirt. And she'll do anything to get it...
1. Complaints

Tara Oliavo Tennant and her best friend Xanthe Indigo Blue pushed Tara's bed up against the wall so that it was in the corner.

"Thanks Xanthe. Things like that become difficult when you're disabled." She made a face, and held up her the cast over her broken arm.

Xanthe giggled. "Oh, poor Tara baby! Got frown out of Bwasic Twaining, did you?"

"Xanthe! It's not funny! I was 90 days in! I so could have finished it!"

"I was 90 days in! I so could have finished it!" Xanthe mocked her, prancing around the room until Tara tackled her.

"Not. Cool. Tara!" She yelped pulling herself up onto the bed, and crawling into the corner.

"Neither is making fun of me, just because I didn't get to do Basic Training with you last time either, because I had tonsillitis."

"I wonder what will happen next time Basic Training starts up. You'll probably get a rare tropical disease."

"Probably." Tara frowned.

"Don't be so glum! Cassie, Mia and Chris get back tomorrow, and four weeks later, you'll get to go try again."

Tara flopped on the bed and pretended to die. "Yay. Mr. Large!"

"It's not that bad... Just torture."

"I was there for 90 days. I know what it's like."

"I never asked you; whose partner where you?"

Tara sighed. "We had a whole plan that I'd be with Cassie, and Mia with Chris, but I think Mr. Large noticed, so I was with Chris, and Cassie was with that Kerry girl. I think she dropped out too.. And Mia was with Cade Simpson."

"Ugh! He's so annoying... All he talks about is T.V. And his latest video games."

"I know! Mia was so angry; she kept abondoning him."

"Sounds like her." Xanthe flicked at a peice of dirt on her navy shirt, that she had recieved on her second mission, it was a solo mission, except for 2 M16 agents, and she had single-handedly gotten a drug-lord thrown in jail. She should have gotten her black shirt, but she'd stuffed up her first mission, by falling down a set of stair and into a room full of the people she had been eavesdropping on.

Tara laughed, and plugged her iPod into her dock, turning their favourite song right up, and grabbing a black texta, so they could draw on her cast.


	2. Swimming

Tara jumped up onto the railing and looked into the learning pool where her Xanthe's six year old sister was _supposed _to be having a lesson. Instead a lanky looking guy was standing with his toes curled over the edge looking scared.

Tara was meant to be picking up Jasmina while Xanthe was away on another mission, so now she had no idea what to do. She thought about calling Cassie, Mia or Chris, who had gotten back 2 days ago, but knew that they wouldn't be able to do anything. She picked up a bit of conversation.

"-Lungs are full of air." The 15 year old in the pool coaxed the boy, who crouched down, before complaining.

"I can't!"

"I'm right here to catch you. Don't be so scared." The girl's voice was calming, but she was raising her eyebrows.

The boy jumped, in the few seconds he was under, the girl looked at Tara. "He has Basic Training soon, he'll need to know how to swim." She explained.

"Oh no, I just-" The boy broke the surface thrashing his arms. She girl helped him to the side of the pool, she already seemed more comfortable with him, and her eyebrows had gone done.

"Well done, James" So that was his name, "You've learned the most important lesson; you float back to the surface when you jump in the water."

"You said you'd catch me." He accused.

"Why are you upset? You did really well."

"I'm never gonna learn to swim, I know it's stupid, but I'm scared of water. My nine-year-old sister can swim, but I'm to scared." Suddenly he looked at Tara. "Who are you?"

"Oh, um, my friends sister is supposed to be having a lesson here."

"How old is she?"

"Ummm, 10?" She lied unconvincingly. The girl smiled at her.

"Don't lie." James looked at her, and the girl stopped smiling.

Tara grimaced. "Six."

James sunk under the water and kicked away from them.

"Did he just...?"

"I think so!" Tara quickly pulled her red shirt and jean shorts off, so she was in her swimmers and leapt over the gate and into the pool.

The two girls soon caught up with James, who had recently surfaced in the deep end.

They came up and looked at him.

"Do that again." The girl said.

"AMY! I'm not even sure what I did!" _Amy? Cool. Suits her._

Suddenly he went under.

"James!?" Amy yelped, diving after him. Tara soon following.

James was swimming around the bottom of the pool happily. Tara could actually she him grinning.

Amy was just floating there, staring at him. She saw Tara and gestured to her to go up.

"What did you do to him!?"

"Nothing! I just told him he was having the same lesson as Jasmina."

"I like her. She's one of my best pupils. I thought I told Xanthe she wouldn't be having lesson's?"

"She's on a mission."

"Oh."

"Well, if you want to go, you can, I think he's fine."

"Same." They laughed, as James surfaced grinning joyfully.

"What?"

"Oh, nothing." Tara smiled, and got out of the pool. She looked over her shoulder as she went up the stairs and saw James diving down again. Amy gave her a big thumbs up.

After she had dried off, she went into her room. She was one of the lucky agents who had been given a proper room before starting Basic Training, and then not getting in, so she had a room without being a qualified agent.

Tara had blonde hair in a pixie cut, pale skin, and dark, almost black eyes. She was short, but very strong.

Her last name came from the actor David Tennant from Doctor Who, whom she had a major celerity crush on.

Oliavo was her sister's name, her sister had been looking after her for 5 years after their parents died, but she was only 17 when the police found them, so therefore was not old enough to provide care for a 9 year old. Tara had been put in a home, where she had met a boy called Kyle, and then been chosen for CHERUB, where she received the news that her sister had been hit by a car crossing the road two days after Tara had been taken away from her, and the home she was in had kept it from her, deciding she was 'in a fragile state of mind after poor care from Oliavo, and did not need the trauma.'

Tara flicked on the TV, but none of the three show's she actually liked were on, so she picked up her battered copy of Jane Austen's complete works, and started _Emma _for the 15th time.

Just as she finished it, someone knocked on her door.

"Come in!" She called, putting her book away, as Mac came in with James.

"Oh, hey Mac. Hey James."

"Hello Tara." Mac smiled warmly. "Amy told me what you did today, and when I brought James in to talk to him about his day, I decided we could talk here. Is that okay?"

"Yeah, it's fine. I wasn't doing anything."

James and Mac sat down on her couch, and James had to move her book to sit.

"Jane Austen? Isn't that stuff for old people?"

_Ugh! He doesn't even know me and he's making fun of the books I read! Geez, what is it with people and what I read?!_

"Yeah, I love classic's."

"Oh. That's... cool. Yeah, cool." He gave a weird expression, and dropped it on the floor, where its cover bent back, and he didn't even bead down to fix it. Tara had gotten the book from Oliavo who bought it at a second hand stall (all they could afford), half price because of its poor condition, and Tara had had to treat it very delicately. She slowly leaned over and grabbed it, fixing the cover, and holding it on her lap.

Mac watched her body language carefully. He had spent most his life working with CHERUB children, and knew most the signs. Tara was practically sending vibes of hatred towards the boy. Although he didn't blame her, that book had been the last thing her sister had given her, and had a personal message on the cover she had only allowed him to read after she completely trusted him. James had treated it like a piece of rotten fish. He may not have known the importance of the book, but it was still somebody else's property.

"So, James, I believe you can swim now, huh?"

"Yeah. I guess so." He shrugged.

"Tara? How did you get him to swim?"

"He just didn't want to admit he was taking the same lesson's as a six year-old, so he tried to prove he could swim."

"Yeah. That's true."

Mac was also watching James carefully. The boy was putting up a very nonchalant facade, but Mac could tell he thought Tara was pretty. _Poor boy. Especially since they'll have Basic Training together. I'll have to talk to Large about not putting them together._

"Okay. Well there's not much else to say. I hope you two become friends."

_Not very likely! _"Bye Mac. Goodbye, James."

Tara was sickened by the foul boy who had no care for other people's property. She just hoped he wouldn't think they were friends. She picked up her book, and read her sister's inscription, again.


End file.
